No one knows how many days have passed, Karon has long lost the concept of precise time, a habit formed since his birth. Dragons have no real perception of time; it’s useless to them.
These dragons were shackled with specially prepared chains, their limbs bound. They were provided with just enough food every day to keep them alive and vibrant.
Even the meager portions of food were heavily mixed with magic potions by the mages to suppress the dragons’ magic power bloodline to prevent outbreaks on the ship.
As a result, not only was the space for dragon movement extremely limited, but their bodies also felt weak during activity, forcing them to curl up. Their heads nestled into their wings, resembling large cats sleeping together.
Karon squinted his eyes for rest, his head tucked beneath his folded wings.
Next to the resting Karon was the mischievous White Dragon Camid. Mumbling something unclear in his sleep, he kept sucking on the tips of his own white wings as if dreaming of eating something delicious.
The Red Dragon sighed helplessly and immersed his consciousness into the Heart Energy Vortex.
Complex or pure strands of the power of thought were absorbed by the runes, which then emitted rare, barely perceptible heart energy to blend into the vortex.
Karon discovered that at some unknown time, the power of thought connecting to White Dragon Gomot had become particularly solid, with the most individual power of thought absorbed from Gomot.
Next there were Camid and Kleyna, these two dragons were extremely trusting of Karon, especially Camid, who invested his limited wisdom in Karon, as if from Camid’s perspective, the Red Dragon had become his external brain.
Then came the other juvenile dragons and the Centaur Tribe, who provided similar amounts of the power of thought to Karon. Juvenile dragons provided slightly more, but it was surprising to see the power of thought from the Centaur Tribe steadily increasing.
Finally, there were the Dogman’s Beloved; although in large numbers, each one offered very little individual power of thought, likely due to the weak individual strength of kobolds.
Lastly, it was the Ogre Giant Demon. This soul-devouring Giant Demon, now counteracted by Karon, also established a weak connection with him, along with some power of thought from ogres. It seemed the actions of the Red Dragon left a profound impression and shadow on these ogres.
Click-click-click
The sound of leather soles touching the ship’s deck approached, suggesting the footsteps of Will Clarence. These days, this human noble constantly sought opportunities to persuade Karon to sign a contract, coming almost daily.
Karon didn’t want to respond to him. If possible, the Red Dragon would crush each bone of this human finely, then discard them on the plains for the wild dogs to savor bit by bit. Better not let me find a chance, the Red Dragon thought sinisterly.
Contrary to Karon’s expectations, it wasn’t Will Clarence who came but the smiling Mage Xiuse.
Squinting eyes? Karon was even less inclined to engage!
The mage gently squatted before the unmoving Red Dragon, patting the dragon’s wing covered in dense red scales, smilingly said, "Hey, juvenile dragon, want to hear a story? A story about dragons!"
"I’m not interested, don’t play such childish games in front of me, mage, I’m not one of those kids who enjoy listening to stories." The Red Dragon mumbled.
Xiuse didn’t take the Red Dragon’s reaction to heart, smilingly continuing to tell the story.
"Long ago, in the Far North’s Glacier Plain, there was a White Dragon who believed most dragons only instinctively used their power, like a pig with strength. Switching a pig’s consciousness with a dragon’s wouldn’t make much difference."
"To escape this predicament, this White Dragon embarked on the path of seeking knowledge. He first found a Low Tier Mage, establishing a contract, agreeing to protect his family for a generation in exchange for a portion of the mage’s inheritance after his death."
Karon’s ears hidden beneath his wings quietly perked up; anyway, to kill time, listening to this mage’s story for amusement seemed fine.
The mage suddenly paused, smiled slightly, and continued, "This White Dragon was very trustworthy. After guarding the mage’s family for a whole hundred years, he received the mage’s sincere trust, thus obtaining knowledge on how to touch a real corner of this world."
"After completing the first contract, the White Dragon found a Middle-tier Mage, similarly establishing a contract, guarding the mage’s family, receiving a portion of the mage’s inheritance."
"Thus, under the White Dragon’s good reputation, eventually, a Legendary Mage nearing the end of life sought him to sign a contract. The Legendary Mage left the White Dragon knowledge about the essence of power."
"All extraordinary creatures in the world have their seed of power. The dragons’ seed of power is their Evil Dragon Bloodline. Within a few hundred years, utilizing this knowledge, the White Dragon transcended the legendary threshold in terms of life’s essence."
Essence transcending the legendary threshold? In Karon’s inherent knowledge, there wasn’t information about this White Dragon, yet he knew that the True Dragon Race’s power far exceeded other defined tiers of power.
Looking at this from an extraordinary tier system, typical dragons surpass power definitions by two tiers. However, a White Dragon from the Five-colored Dragon Species, whose bloodline is already at the lowest, generally requires reaching Ancient Dragon or Ancient Dragon status to achieve legendary power, i.e., at least a thousand-year-old White Dragon possessing power to rival legends. Even then, White Dragon’s bloodline often doesn’t support them crossing into the legendary.
Yet, this White Dragon, in mere centuries, lifted the life essence beyond the legendary, stronger and more dangerous than those Ancient Dragons, almost like a fairy tale.
Karon’s interest was piqued; he extended his head from beneath his wings, intending to hear what next words this mage might say.
Xiuse’s tone gradually intensified: "This White Dragon even, after stepping into the Star Realm, killed a legendary tier Titan, known as ’Breath of Winter’. He wielded a destructive breath capable of bringing winter to all life. And the Legendary Mage who created all this was part of a lineage of mages of which I’m one, and we call ourselves Research Mages!"
The air gradually turned stagnant, and after a long while, seeing the Red Dragon seemingly in a daze, the mage couldn’t help but wave his hand in front of the dragon, "Say something, juvenile dragon!"
"What should I say?" Karon was taken aback, thoughts still lingering on the mage’s previous words, the real side of the world. The extreme perception trigger he experienced likely showed a real aspect of the world as well.
Squinting Mage Xiuse’s eyes widened, apparently a bit frenzied: "Juvenile dragon, your talent far surpasses that White Dragon’s, you shouldn’t be like those dragons, indulging in your own bloodline. Join me, I’ll assist you, you can help me, together, our future is boundless!"
The Red Dragon boredly swung his tail, saying nothing. This sweet promise was not only grand but gritty. A dragon’s affair is a dragon’s affair. Karon is Karon; what does it matter to a so-and-so? Besides, the situation isn’t clear yet, so it’s better to observe and adapt rather than making rash choices.
The dragon’s silence indicated a certain attitude. The mage squinted his eyes again, stood up, and deeply gazed at the Red Dragon, "Your eyes harbor a true dragon, juvenile dragon. If you change your mind, I’ll assist you!"